Category: Family

The Price of a Restroom. $2.17. New York.

Published on by Tracie1 Comment

Sorry for the blurriness of the photo.  It was done very quickly, because of a time constraint.

$2.17.  That is the going rate to use a restroom in New York City.

We were in Chinatown and realized that we had no idea where a bathroom was and asked a New York City Patrolman who was standing nearby, who directed us to the local McDonald’s.

As we entered the three story building a guard – uhmm – employee was shouting “Paying customers only!” and directing everyone into the line to order.  So I quickly ordered the first cheap item that popped into my head.  A small ice cream cone.

Only then, after showing our receipt were we allowed to go upstairs to the restrooms.

After Hayden and I came out of the bathrooms, we found Denton and Olivia sitting at a table, where Denton informed me that we had a time limit of 7 minutes to consume said ice cream cone.  Seven minutes!!!  He said the same dragon guard lady told them as they ascended the stairs that the time limit started from the time of the receipt.  Wow!

I suppose that it is a small price to pay for the privilege of using indoor plumbing, but REALLY?!?

A friend of mine laughed and told me about an app that you can get – it’s free – that will tell you where free bathrooms are in your vicinity.  I immediately downloaded it, but didn’t need it for the rest of our trip.

You live and you learn something new every day!

Also, this!  How crazy, strange, weird and freaky!  Our customer number was the same as our total.  Yep, I am a strange person for finding this amazing.

Has this ever happened to any of you?  Inquiring minds want to know.

Save

enoteca OTTO pizzeria.  New York.

Published on by TracieLeave a comment

Todays lunch/supper – lupper? – was a huge success.  We ate at enoteca OTTO pizzeria, one of Mario Batali’s restaurants on 5th Avenue.  It. Was. Awesome.  

Denton ordered one of the days specials. Orecchiette​ with pancetta and spigarello.  Heaven.  Absolute heaven on a plate.

Hayden chose Quattro Formaggio.  It’s a pizza with four separate cheeses.  Mozerella, tallagio, cacio, and ricotta.

Liv ordered the Cacio e Pepe.  It’s a pizza with Mozerella, pecorino, cacio, Parmesano and black pepper.

I chose the Quattro Stagioni.  It has peppers, mushrooms, Swiss chard, Mozerella and Cotto.  It was delicious.  My favorite of all the choices on my pizza was the mushrooms.  Divine.

After we ate everyone wanted to get a gelato.  I was completely stuffed, and I knew that Liv and Hayden would never finish theirs so I didn’t choose one.

Denton got Lime/Basil.  Let me tell you, I couldn’t have eaten that one.  It was so tart I thought my jaws would lock up.  But it was good, just too much for my taste buds.

Hayden got Mango/Coffee.  If you like mangoes this is your choice.  It was mango heaven for Hayden.  The coffee was my favorite, it was lovely.

Liv chose Dark Chocolate/Cherry.  They were both excellent.  She loved her choice and our waiter laughed and said that she was the only one who made a logical pairing.

I would highly recommend this restaurant to anyone.  It was one of my favorites!

Tonight’s supper was a bust.

Published on by TracieLeave a comment

Every single night (and day too,) we have tried something new to us for lunch and supper.   New York is a wonderful place to do this.  I mean think of the possibilities!

All four of us got something different so that we could mix and match our meals to be able to try the most dishes.

Tonight was a complete failure.  We tried Haitian food.

Liv ordered the Mixed Vegetable sandwich with kale, sweet plantains, avacado,  tomatoes and chickpea spread with fries.  It was sooooo sweet!

Hayden chose the cod fish sandwich which had tomatoes and avacado on brioche. Uhmmmm, the best thing we all had to say about that was, nope.  It was so, so fishy.

I ordered the burger with red onion chutney, roasted peppers and spiced herbed mayonnaise.  One of the main reasons that I didn’t enjoy my meal was the excess mayo that was on it and they also MADE you choose between cheddar and swiss cheese.  I don’t like cheese on my burger thanks.  I also chose for my side, Akra.  They are shredded vegetables fried into fritters.  These were just okay, but had was too much batter instead of veggies.

Denton ordered the Griot pan fried pork shoulder with piklis and sos,  fried plantains and a side of rice and beans.  I think that this was the best dish we got.  I loved the roasted red peppers and onions that came with the pork, but the pork was very, very dry.

So, all and all, we just didn’t enjoy our Haitian dinner.  The next time we try it will be with one of Denton’s cousins who lived in Haiti for two years.  I think this was just too different for us to go it alone on.  Maybe next time will be better!  

We won’t stop trying new things.  Nothing ventured, nothing gained!

Thanksgiving Recap.

Published on by TracieLeave a comment

Hello Monday!  I am so glad to see the start of a new week.  Last week was a doozy.  Let’s recap.

We always go home to see my family for Thanksgiving.  Or ThanksChristmas as it is, because we don’t get back before Christmas time, we have that with my family during Thanksgiving.  I’m tired just writing that.

Last week we were supposed to leave on Wednesday to get in as much family time as possible.  Denton had something break at work that he had had on order for over a year, and wasn’t supposed to install until after the holidays.  The part had other ideas.  It literally had just arrived, but the installers weren’t planning to be here like I said until after the holidays.  After a few days off adrenaline, heart attack inducing days the $100,000 job was complete.  So we left for my parents on Thursday.  Traffic wasn’t too bad!  I’ll take my blessings where I can get them.

In Bristol, TN we stopped to fuel up and as I was cleaning out the truck, I stuck my hand in sauce from lunch and had to clean EVERYTHING with rags from the dispenser at the gas station.  My love ring that Denton bought me when we moved to our tiny town had that grossness all over it and I took it off to clean it too.  I put it back on and proceeded to clean out the truck floorboards.  Liv decided to go to the bathroom and I went with her and as we walked back to the truck I glanced down and noticed my ring was missing.  We searched everywhere.  And I mean everywhere.  Denton literally took everything out of the gas station garbage and it was still nowhere to be found.  I was devastated.  My grandmother lost her wedding set after my grandfather passed away and I just can’t even imagine what that felt like.  Devastation.

On Friday, my brother’s kids finally get to come over to spend the night (my kids and his kids look forward to this all year long) and after a great photo taking shoot of everyone, we tromp back to the house to start supper and our baby girl of the family – who is 8 – starts vomiting.  Oh. My. Lord.  We knew that our baby nephew – who is 5 – had gotten sick the night before, but they thought it was something he ate.  It wasn’t.  My oldest nephew started with the whole horribleness that night.  In our family, because of work schedules, we generally have the big family Thanksgiving on Saturday.  At my mother’s house.  Where all of the sickness was happening.

We started the phone calls to alert everyone to stay away.  Then we made the painful decision to start home early.  Denton and I have traveled with this kind of sickness before.  I think it was 2002.  We were at his parents, which at that time was a 13 hour drive.  It was pure misery.  We decided that if we were going to get this mess, we would rather have the almost five hour drive behind us.

We made it home without any sickness so far and decided to stop and get pizza.  I ordered it over the phone and we stopped to pick it up.  Liv ran in to use the restroom and Denton just happened to check the pizza while she was gone and it was completely wrong.  Arhhhgggg!  So, we waited while the overwhelmed pizza guy redid that pizza.  Finally made it all the way home.

This morning as I gathered everything to prepare a shipment for my Etsy shop, I dropped the transferware turkey platter that I sold this weekend.  That photo above is what happened to it.

Poor platter.  Poor lady who bought said platter and poor me who had to refund all of that lovely moolah because I am apparently the klutziest human being alive.  I seriously could not believe it.

As I’m typing this my mother just texted me that she is vomiting.  Lord have mercy.  She said that my 5 year old nephew wanted to know what color it was.  Only him!

I hope that your holiday was much less eventful.  Here’s to a sick  and klutzy free December!

Save

Anniversaries.

Published on by TracieLeave a comment

 

Image result for VETERANS DAY

source

You did know that this Friday, November the 11th is Veterans Day, right?  And that the United States Marine Corps 241st birthday is today, November 10th?  And that Saturday, November 12th is the 22nd anniversary of the day that Denton and I met?

Yes, is the answer to all three of those questions.

Veterans Day is a day for us to honor all of those who have served our country with pride and those who are serving today to defend our freedoms.  Did you know that Veterans day was formerly called Armistice Day until 1954?   Veterans Day and Armistice Day are celebrated on November 11th because World War I was formally ended at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month of 1918, when the Armistice with Germany went into effect.

Image result for united states marine corps

source

The Marine Corps birthday is especially important to our family because this is the branch of the military that my awesome husband served in.  We are very partial to Marines in my family.  At this count we have 7 men in our families that have served in the Marines, and many, many more in the other branches of the military.  And I am hearing rumors of more ready to join.

wedding-day22 years ago this weekend Denton and I met for the first time.  We got married four months later.  True love and pheromones, with an amazing amount of perseverance, grace from God and grit, I love him more now than I did in 1994.


So in honor of my Marine, he will be getting a lovely present that I know he’s going to love.  Grunt Style is a website run by veterans for veterans and others who want to be.  They have  an amazing array of clothes, backpacks, and other gear that I know your veteran will love too.

If you subscribe for $1 through November 15th, you will get a Grunt Style Shirt. Free Shipping Included.  Happy shopping!

Thank you to all our Veterans for your service.  You are loved and appreciated!

This post has affiliate links in it.  Click here to find out what that means for you.

Save

Save

Save

Old is new again.

Published on by TracieLeave a comment

wp-1474896510637.jpgMy family and I went home again this weekend.  My brother and his family are moving into my Mama and Daddy’s old house.  That’s what we call it.  The old house.  We don’t call my Mom and Dad’s new house the new house.  It’s just the house.  Do you do that?  Name things in your mind automatically?

We spent the weekend cleaning and cleaning and cleaning.  Painting, and cleaning some more.  Putting up beds, and cleaning again.  There were renters in the house before and my mother said she had never see such a nasty mess.  One of my aunt’s who does home health laughed and said “You haven’t see anything”!  She said it looked like it was spotless compared to some of the places she has gone into.  That actually makes me shudder.

I didn’t get one single photo of the cleaning process, but I did take lots and lots of cloud photos with my phone!

wp-1474896544142.jpgBut, it’s cleaner now and moving towards the end goal which is to get everyone moved in and settled.  The next time we go home will be closer to Thanksgiving which is when we have Christmas with my family.  I can’t wait to give my nephew his present, he’s going to love it!  He’s fourteen and getting a full drum set.  It’s been a dream of his for years to learn to play the drums and this is something we had at home that wasn’t being used, so killing two birds with one stone.  We gain some room in our house and he gets to try something he desperately want to do.  Everyone’s happy.  Except for his brother and sister’s when he starts practicing all the time!

wp-1474896584843.jpgEverything is still so green towards home.  Here in our tiny town (we are almost five hours away from my hometown) everything is beginning to have a brown haze to it.  I don’t know if our leaves will actually have color this year or if they will just gasp their last breath and fall dead to the floor of the forest.  We had almost no rain this entire summer, so it’s a crapshoot as to what the foliage will look like in October.

wp-1474896528361.jpgWhat’s going on in your part of the world today?